How to Compare Commercial Cleaning Companies
Compare commercial cleaning companies by checking that each bid matches your written scope, calling references with specific questions, reviewing inspection and staffing plans, and verifying insurance. The lowest monthly price often hides skipped periodic work or weak supervision. Imperial Cleaning has served Idaho and Utah since 2015 as a licensed, insured, and bonded provider with quotes in 24 hours.
Are they pricing the same scope?
Line up bids task by task against your frequency matrix. Flag missing periodic work (carpet extraction, strip and wax), unclear "as needed" language, and different night counts.
Normalize price: calculate cost per night and cost per square foot for the same service week. Ask what is excluded (liners, paper, after-hours surcharges).
Watch for startup discounts that expire in 90 days without a clear renewal price. Ask for year-two pricing assumptions in writing.
What should you ask references?
Ask about missed cleans in the last 90 days, response time when something was wrong, and whether the same lead cleaner stays on site.
Billing accuracy: surprise charges, invoice detail, and how add-on work is approved.
Inspection quality: does the vendor provide reports or only fix issues when the client complains?
Call references with similar square footage and schedule (nightly vs weekly), not just the vendor's favorite account.
Staffing, supervision, and backup coverage
Confirm employees vs subcontractors and who trains new staff on your building. High turnover without a dedicated lead is a common failure point.
Ask who inspects, how often, and what happens when a cleaner is sick. You need a written backup plan, not a verbal promise.
For multi-shift sites, clarify whether one vendor owns all hours or if day porter is a separate line item.
Insurance, safety, and products
Match certificates to your RFP minimums: general liability, workers comp, auto if applicable. Additional insured should be available before start.
Green products, disinfectant protocols, and SDS access matter for offices with allergy-sensitive staff and for medical-adjacent spaces.
Safety: slip hazard procedures for wet floors, lockout/tagout awareness near mechanical rooms, and reporting for broken fixtures or leaks.
Step-by-step process
- 1
Build a comparison spreadsheet
Rows for each scope item and columns for each vendor with price, frequency, and notes.
- 2
Normalize and flag gaps
Calculate per-night cost and mark missing periodic tasks or vague language.
- 3
Call three references per finalist
Use the same script: missed cleans, turnover, billing, inspections.
- 4
Interview operations lead
Ask about supervision, backup coverage, and inspection tools.
- 5
Verify insurance and contract terms
Review termination, price increases, and change-order process before award.
Frequently asked questions
How many bids should we collect?
Three qualified bids after site walks is standard for single-site awards. Multi-location portfolios may run a formal RFP with more respondents.
Is per-square-foot pricing comparable across vendors?
Only if scope and nights per week are identical. Per-square-foot helps sanity-check totals but should not replace line-item review.
Should we visit a vendor's other accounts?
If possible, walk a similar facility they service. Photos in proposals are useful but not a substitute for seeing nightly results.
What if one bid is far lower than the others?
Audit for omitted tasks, unrealistic labor hours, or sub-minimum insurance. Extremely low bids often rise after contract start or service suffers.
Need this done right?
Imperial Cleaning Inc handles construction and commercial cleaning across Idaho and Utah.